Punch needle



May 18, 1943 s. A. CARLSON I PUNCH NEEDLE Filed Jan. 8, 1941 Patented May 18, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PUNCH NEEDLE Gustav A. Carlson, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The Boye Needle Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois 2 Claims.

This invention relates to a punch needle. Such a needle is used for carrying yarn and other threads through a foundation fabric for forming loops on the one side of the fabric.

Afterward, if desired, the loops may be cut to 'A further object is to provide a punch needle with a handle supported and formed so as to facilitate the punching operation while at the same time facilitating re-threading. Another object is to provide a punch needle equipped with a cooperating stop or guard member which further facilitates the threading of the needle and the punching operation. Other specific objects and advantages will appear as the specification proceeds.

The invention is illustrated, in a preferred embodiment, by the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of a punch needle embodying my invention; Fig. 2, a top plan view; and Fig. 3, a perspective view of the guard member detached from the punch needle.

The punch needle comprises a single hollow member ID with the front portion thereof forming a tubular needle H, the rear thereof forming a flat handle l2, and the central portion thereof providing a circular support l3 for' the shifting of the stop or guard member H.

The needle portion H is provided with a point l5 and with an eye IS in the pointed portion. A

.slot l'l runs rearwardly from the eye or point portion of the needle and terminates in an upwardly-flared bell member I8. The upwardlyflared bell portion I8 serves an important function in preventing the yarn from working outof the slot l1 during the feeding of the yarn forwardly.

At the rear of the needle portion H is the barrel portion l3 through which the slot l'l also extends in alignment with the slot ll of the needle portion H. The barrel portion l3 receives the circular clamping ring l9 of the guard member l4 and permits it to be shifted thereon.

At the rear of the barrel portion l3, the hollow member is flattened to provide a fiat handle portion [2. This portion is relatively narrow in width and at its top thin edge is provided with a series of adjustment openings 20. It will be Application January 8, 1941, Serial No. 373,660

(01. 112-80) I noted that the handle portion i2 is flattened i alignment with the needle portion II, as shown more clearly in Fig. 2, thus causing one side'of the punch needle to lie in a straight line throughout its entire length. On the other side, the portion i3 extends somewhat beyond the remaining portions. The flattening of the handle increases its height and the shoulders 2| thus formed serve as a stop for the sleeve member I9 in the rearward adjustment movement thereof.

The stop or guard member I4 is provided with a collar or sleeve 19 receiving the barrel portion l3 so as to slide thereon and it is provided with a longitudinal slot 22 aligned with the slot I'I which extends continuously from the rear of handle l2 through the barrel portion l3 and the needle portion l l. Thus there is an open or lateral slot for the entire length of the punch needle and through which yarn may be drawn into the interior of the punch needle.

The guard member I4 is provided with a rearwardly-extending spring finger 23 having a de' pending point adapted to be brought into engagement with any of the adjustment openings 20. The guard is also provided with a. forwardlyextending member 24 having a V-shaped flange 25 extending partially around the needle portion I I. It will be noted that the flat finger 23 of the guard extends along the narrow edge of the flat handle l2 and is thus entirely out of the way when the handle I2 is grasped by the fingers.

In the operation of the device, yarn is fed through the eye of the needle point [5 and then drawn rearwardly within the slot ll. This movement of drawing the yarn rearwardly for a very short distance causes the yarn to be fed quickly into the interior of the punch needle so that threading is in this way accomplished in a moment of time. The guard member may be shifted retadily along the barrel portion l3 and the finger 23 brough into engagement with the desired opening 20. The punching operation then follows the usual course, yarn being fed forwardly through the needle portion II and eye [6 in each step of the operation. To remove the yarn from the device, it is only necessary to draw the yarn through the slot ll beginning at the rear of the device and extending forwardly through slot H to the point.

In the feeding forwardly of the yarn or thread during the punching operation, there is a tendency for the yarn to leave the needle portion through the slot I1. I have found that this tendency can be overcome and the yarn maintained regularly within the needl portion by providing the bell I 8 which extends upwardly in an arouate shape at the rear of the restricted needle portion ll.

While in the foregoing description, I have set forth certain details and arrangements, it will b understood that such details and specific structures may be widely varied by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention herein set forth.

I claim:

1. In a device of the character set forth, a hollow member comprising a tubular needle portion equipped with a point having an eye, a central barrel portion, and a flat handle portion, the barrel portion merging at its rear into the handle portion, said member having a'slot running from said point through said tubular needle portion, said central barrel portion and said fiat handle portion to the rear end of the handle portion, a guard having a sleeve engaging said barrel por- -tion and being provided with a slot aligned with said first-mentioned slot whereby thread may :be 'drawn intothe interior of said handle, barrel andlneedle portions through said slots, said flat handle portion providing a rear'stop for limiting rearward movement .of said sleeve, and an outwardly flared bell portion at the rear end of the needle portion guarding said slot in the needle portion-the outer edge-of said bell portion being in substantial alignment with the outer surface of said fiat handl portion.

2. In a device of the character set forth, a hollow member providing a tubular needle por tion equipped with a point and an eye therein, a central barrel portion, and a flat handle portion, the barrel portion merging at its rear into the handle portion, said flat handle portion having one of its relatively narrow edges provided with a plurality of spaced openings, a guard member carried by said hollow member in slidable relation thereon and having a relatively narrow finger extending along said narrow edge and equipped with a point adapted to engage one of said openings, said finger lying against said narrowedge and within the width thereof, said member having a slot running from said point through said needle, barrel and handle portions to th rear end of the handle portion and said guard being equipped with a slot aligned with said first-mentioned slot whereby thread may be drawn into the interior of said handle, barrel and needle portions through said slots, and an outwardly flared bell portion'guarding said slot at the rear of said needle portion,:theouter edge of said bell portion being insubstantial align- .ment'with the outer surface of the flattened han- -dle portion.

GUSTAV A. 'CARLSON. 

